121 Breeding Tigers Estimated To Be Found In Nepal

Kathmandu, Nepal – The first ever overall nation-wide estimate of the tiger population brought a positive ray of hope among conservationists. The figures announced by the Nepal Government's Department of National Parks and Wildlife Conservation (DNPWC) shows the presence of 121 (100 – 194) breeding tigers in the wild within the four protected areas of Nepal. The 2008 tiger population estimate was jointly implemented by the DNPWC, Department of Forests (DOF), WWF, National Trust for Nature Conservation (NTNC) with support from Save The Tiger Fund (STF), WWF-US, WWF-UK, WWF International and US Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS).The 2008 nation-wide tiger population was initiated on 15 November 2009 in the Terai Arc Landscape (TAL) of Nepal both inside and outside the protected areas of Nepal. [TAL encompasses the Terai region of Nepal and into tiger range states across the border into India.]"To obtain reliable population estimates of wide ranging species like the tiger, it is important to undertake the survey simultaneously in all potential habitats," says Dr. Rinjan Shrestha, Conservation Biologist with WWF Nepal. Previous studies had been undertaken in different time periods and at different spatial scales."To derive information on both abundance and distribution of tigers, the current survey employed two methods - Camera Trapping method inside the protected areas and Habitat Occupancy survey both inside and outside the protected areas."According to WWF Global Tiger Network Initiative, the wild tiger population is at a tipping point. Tigers are experiencing a range collapse, occupying 40 per cent less habitat than was estimated just one decade ago. The estimated number of tigers in important range countries is frighteningly low, with a recent government census suggesting there may be as few as 1,300 tigers left in India, the species' stronghold. And tigers are facing an epidemic of poaching and habitat loss across their range.The main reason for the decline of tiger populations has been attributed to poaching and illegal trade. This is linked to the illegal international trade in tiger parts and derivatives (skin, bones, meat in some cases although not reported in Nepal) and use in traditional Chinese Medicines (TCM). Apart from these, sporadic cases of retaliatory killing from irate communities have been reported. Other important reasons of tiger population decline are habitat shrinkage and fragmentation due to human intervention, loss/decline of prey species."The tiger numbers have increased in Chitwan but decreased in Bardia and Shuklaphanta," said Mr. Anil Manandhar, Country Representative, WWF Nepal."In spite of the decade long insurgency, encroachment, poaching and illegal trade, the present numbers is a positive sign, but we can't remain unworried. The declining numbers in western Nepal has posed more challenges, needing a concerted effort to save this charismatic endangered species focusing on anti-poaching and illegal wildlife trade."The Government of Nepal has approved and launched the 'Tiger conservation Action Plan 2008- 2012'. A comprehensive management plan has been devised in which the target is to increase the population of tigers by 10 per cent within the first 5 year period of the plan implementation."Tigers can not be saved by the effort of a single individual or a single organization," said Mr. Gopal Prasad Upadhyay, Director General, DNPWC. "The transboundary relation with India needs to be strengthened further and all organizations should work together to conserve tigers."http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/07/090727135537.htm

(Note: The tiger population in a tiger ranging country like India, Nepal, Bhutan, China, Indonesia, Combodia, Thailand etc. indicates the health of the forests and ecological units of that country. Tiger is an umbrella species, symbolic species, flagship species... placed at the top of the ecological pyramid. If the tiger are wiped out means the forests will also go in due course of time or that will become 'green desert' as said by Valmik Thapar in an interview recently. How does it sound 1000 tigers left in India and 100 in Nepal? It is humiliating and discouraging. Would it be possible to convince the society about the meaning of these headlines? As a common human being of this county I ask these questions from myself only...Ramesh Pandey)

Just 1,000 tigers left in India

By Gill CharltonPublished: 8:00AM BST 18 Jul 2009, Telegraph,UK.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/earth/wildlife/5850187/Just-1000-tigers-left-in-India.html

Only a year ago there were calculated to be 24 tigers in the park, one of India’s 27 tiger reserves.
A century ago, India had about 40,000 tigers. By 1988, as a result of extensive hunting and poaching, there were just 4,500 left. Now the true figure is probably 1,000.
Panna, located near Khajuraho, is the second reserve in which there are now no tigers. Sariska National Park in Rajasthan lost all its tigers in 2005.
The decline is said to be largely down to poachers serving an insatiable demand for tiger bones, claws and skin in China, Taiwan and Korea, where they are used in traditional medicine. Other factors include electric fences erected by farmers, illegal logging and fights between male tigers over diminishing territory.
Several years ago I visited the forests of Bandhavgarh National Park, a few hours’ drive from Panna in remote Madhya Pradesh . The park contains about 45 tigers and offers the best chance in the world of seeing these kings of the jungle in the wild.
I saw six different tigers, including a magnificent young male. I followed through the jungle on the back of an elephant as the tiger marked his range. Eventually he strolled right up to us and dropped at our feet. It was a moving experience – his black-striped pelt was beautiful, so shiny and silken, his paws were huge, the size of dinner plates, and his large yellow eyes seemed to look straight through us. He was too young to fear, too old to be shy. Now he may be dead.
Even at relatively well-run Bandhavgarh there has been poaching. Just before my visit a gang had been caught with seven tiger skins. I was told that the men involved were from Tamil Nadu in the south and that they had struck – with local help – on the orders of a Nepalese-based gang.
It was said that the villager who led the poachers to the tigers was paid £100 for his services – a sum it is hard to resist in what is one of the poorest parts of rural India.
An official government census of the tiger population in all India’s reserves is being carried out this October; the results could make very sad reading.

(Note: This is the 'new number' given to the tiger population in India by the conservationists and international media. Earlier it was said that there had been 40,000 tigers in the country which declined to 1400 in 2007 as per the camera trap method estimation jointly done by NTCA and WII. Now it is said that there had been 1,00,000 tigers in India centuries back which has now come down to 1000. Is it true that only 1000 tigers are left in a vast country with 23% of total geographical area under forests. Only 1000 tigers left in our wilderness including tiger reserves??? It sounds frightening. It is more frightening when some people guess it even lesser. Are we going to loose all our tigers in wilderness in the next coming decade? This situation is extremely challenging. Efforts are continuously made from all possible quarters, but there is something missing... perhaps the spirit.....spirit to save 'our tigers'..........one of the most fascinating flagship species of 'our country'............our 'national animal'. It is a war like situation, as I strongly feel now and then...........but do we really have warriors??--Ramesh Pandey)

Forest dept relieved as master poacher is behind the bars

The department is relieved after the conviction of a poacher by a Pilibhit court in a tiger poaching case of 1992. The five-year sentence and a fine of Rs 25,000 to Dalipo (55) has given hope to the department and the Wildlife Crime Control Bureau (WCCB) that the activities of her gang would now be curbed.
The accused was caught with tiger skin and bones. During investigation, her name had also cropped up in trading tiger skins to notorious trader in wildlife products, Sansar Chand.
Dalipo’s gang, comprising mostly her relatives and locals, operated in the pretext of beggars and vendors. They would live on the border of tiger sanctuaries in makeshift huts. The gang was active mainly in Pilibhit, Pithoragarh and Lakhimpur Kheri.
Her brother Tota Ram had figured during investigation in a tiger poaching case in East Terai division of Uttarakhand in 2004-05. Cases of tiger poaching have also been registered against her son and daughter-in-law.
“The gang, operating as poachers, carriers and traders of tiger skin, bones, has been active for at least 30 years before it caught our attention in 2005,” said a senior WCCB official.
A native of Haryana, Dalipo was caught in 2005 with a tiger skin and skeleton. But she and her nine co-accused had got away with a sentence of only nine months.
Dalipo has been found involved in four cases of tiger poaching. In 2007-08, iron traps were found from her in possession in Mehrosa. A tiger skin was seized from her in Kishanpur in 2006-07.

Link:http://www.indianexpress.com/news/forest-dept-relieved-as-master-poacher-is-behind-the-bars/487926/

Katerniaghat echoed in Rajya Sabha

Here is a good news for all who love a place called Katerniaghat. It is also a good news for all who believe that hard work speaks louder than words and for them also who wish that such lesser known marvels must get their recognition before getting wiped out from the wildlife scene.

The day before yesterday there were variety of news stories in Indian dailies like 'depleting tiger population', 're-introduction of Cheetah or 'Say cheese-Cheetah is being imported' and so on and so forth. Actually the hon. MOS, MoEF, Mr Jairam Ramesh had remarkably replied the queries of the hon Members of Parliament during calling attention motion in Rajya Sabha on 07.07.09. The motion was called by hon Member of Parliament Mr Rajiv Pratap Rudy on depleting tiger population in the country.

Yesterday one of my friend informed me that during the motion some hon member took the name of Katerniaghat for its revival and good tiger population in the area. And it was unbelievably true. The hon Member of Parliament and renowned media personality Mr Chandan Mitra (Editor The Pioneer, New Delhi) mentioned the success story of restoration of Katerniaghat while narrating the plight of tiger reserves of our country.

The Katerniaght finally figured out as one of important tiger areas. We; out team worked hard for almost four years to revitalize the area. It was our team work that payed finally and the tiger population got revamped.

It is very interesting to share that it took me almost one year to sight a tiger in Katerniaghat in 2005, staff took another year to sight tigers in their beats and ranges and visitors could locate tigers only third year onwards in the sanctuary. Our surveillance technique to monitor tigers and leopards on day to day basis worked remarkably well. It got institutionalised in the division afterward. It helped in strategising protection measures in the area. The breeding of tigers started from the first year itself after getting stress free habitat and subsequently every year3-4 tigers bred successfully.

I could take a photograph in which three tigers (mother and two sub adult cubs) were walking on bandha. That was probably the first ever photograph of tiger family in Katerniaghat. The poaching was controlled by mainly arresting 16 Bawarias including queenpin Dilipo and dreaded Dariya and not allowing them to come out from jail till conviction. Fighting against all odds we worked like bhoot, day and night and we could see jungle smiling, swinging and dancing.

Mr Chandan Mitra said"good example of a complete regeneration is a sanctuary called Kathaniya Ghat in UP, where at one stage it had been devastated by the maoists from Nepal but today, it has been regenerated and the tiger population has returned".

It is a great compliments for us. I remember it is said that beauty is in the eyes of beholder. No doubt such compliment is a reward for our team who worked day and night to fight against all odds (including 3 big dharnas, many FIRs, complaints, attacks and rumors). My all team members who did remarkable job during that time and were instrumental in arresting around 250 accused in almost 4 years time are here with me to share this compliments. I know how much time, energy and labour it takes to take an accused on judicial remand when the competent court is 70-100 Km away from the remote jungle. And then opposing bail, most of the time in session court also and finally filing complaints and fighting to get them convicted. It is tough job for the forest staff who has lot many other works to do. I remember one of the mafia after 'Operation Trishul' filed 19 writ petition in high court to get back the seized timber (11 trucks of teak and khair wood).

The successful natural breeding of Gharials (2005 to 2008), revival of swamp deer, increase in prey base were other symptoms of healing. There are other such remarks given by like AJT John Singh, PK Sen, Dr Asad Rahmani, Rom Whittaker, Ravi Singh, Bivash Pandav, Raja CKP Singh, Neeraj Srivastava, Rupak De, and other wildlife experts who had seen Katerniaghat earlier and can simply visualise and compare the changes in their subsequent visits. Thanks to all who encouraged us for our good works. There was always great support from our PCCFs and CWLWs. Some of our media friend were generous enough to give us lots of space from local to national level.

I left Katerniaghat on 17th July 2008 and has yet to complete one year in Delhi on deputation to GoI, but still feel a strong bondage with that area, which is unique in its nature. I say Katerniaghat is like Banaras, it takes time to understand it.

Recently one of my friend Sanjay Kumar could get photograph of 3 tigers together in Katerniaghat range. Tigers breeding is on and this year some of the females have given birth to cubs. Now they are coming out with them.

The problem which is cropping up there is of 'pressure' in two of the buffer ranges and two adjoining ranges of the sanctuary. The Katerniaghat and Nishangada range has still great potential to accommodate increasing tiger population.

The challenge is to keep the area healthier and better, because it takes too much time to revive an area, but when it start sliding down it takes no time to ruin the whole castle. There are many examples of it.

I wish all the best for Katerniaghat and for my team who worked there with me for those four years.

Wildlife panel seizes 70 birds

New Delhi 24 June:Illegal trade of protected birds continue unabated in the city with the Wildlife Crime Control Bureau (WCCB) officials seizing 70 live birds including parrots and munias meant for sale.Alexandrian parrots and black headed munias were seized from a locked room of a rented house in Daryaganj area in central Delhi, WCCB official Ramesh Pandey said.However, no arrest has been made in this connection."On the basis of an information, a raid was conducted by a WCCB team with assistance from local police. The team led by WCCB inspector Aarti Singh found the room, where the birds were kept, locked and the owners had no clue about the tenants to whom they had rented out the rooms," Pandey said.During investigation, it was found that two minor boys living nearby were employed by the accused to feed the birds.
- (Agencies)
Jun 24, 2009

http://news.chennaionline.com/newsitem.aspx?NEWSID=90860304-f041-4ad2-b4ec-eaa399149af7&CATEGORYNAME=NATL

Illegal pet trade thrives

23 Jun 2009, 1317 hrs IST, PTI (Archana Jyoti)
NEW DELHI: They may not abound in numbers but exist they do in many cities, doing good business with local as well as foreign clientele, most of it illegally. Waking up to this menace of pet shops operating illegally, Wildlife Crime Control Bureau (WCCB) has now asked the state governments to chalk out a policy to register dealers engaged in pet trade, selling domestic birds and animals across the country. "We have asked the chief wildlife wardens of all the states and civic agencies to regulate the dealers involved in the business of selling domestic animals and birds," says Ramesh Pandey, a senior official with WCCB. He knows better. Just a few months ago, the Bureau had unearthed an illegal pet trade racket and seized four live Indian Tent turtles from Gurgaon and arrested a person in this connection. The accused, Rittin Mehrotra, a resident of Dhankot in Gurgaon, was allegedly running his pet business for many years. The WCCB officials came to know that some of his pets allegedly included exotic and endangered species which are protected under Indian law. Indian Tent turtle are listed in the schedule one of the Wildlife Protection Act 1972. Being small and having very beautiful shells, they are traded as pets in the country as well as in the international market. Besides, turtles, the enforcement official said much of the pet trade is dominated by reptiles and exotic birds and an increasing trend exists to meet the demand of specialist collectors for some of the world's rarest species. In the garb of selling muniyas which are allowed for trade under law, the dealers are making the protected species such as Straw-headed Bulbul Pycnonotus zeylanicus, Palm Cockatoo Probosciger atterrimus, tortoises and freshwater turtles (Indian Star Tortoise Geochelone elegans, and the Pignosed Turtle Carretochelys insculpta), snakes or lizards, available to customers at exorbitant prices. The global demand is huge and hence trade is flourishing, threatening the renowned biodiversity hotspots in South-east Asia - as well as rising demand from countries within South-east Asia for endemic species from Africa, South America and Australasia. A report by Traffic International, the wildlife trade monitoring network, dwells in detail how freshwater turtles and tortoises in Southeast Asia is fuelling rampant illegal trade in the pet markets of Indonesia. Terming the trend as a serious threat to the wildlife, Sameer Sinha from Traffic India said, "The pet trade is mostly in unorganised sector with no guidelines and regulations. Since wildlife trade is not allowed under Wildlife Protection Act, the civic agencies can register the pet dealers under Shops and Eastablishment Act to ensure a comprehensive policy. WCCB move is welcome in this direction." All the enforcement agencies should have the list of such dealers so that their activities are under scanner and can also also act as a deterrent, he added. Ashok Kumar, Vice-Chairman of Wildlife Trust of India added, "in the garb of pet trade, several threatened and endemic species are being smuggled outside and in the country. Various districts of Uttar Pradesh have become the hub of dealers engaged in sale and purchase of birds and turtles while authorities such as railways and police are just sleeping over the matter, Kumar added. "It's time we understood and recognised that all wildlife are protected species and buying them and keeping them without permission is illegal. Anybody who spots a turtle in a shop must immediately report this. Thousands of Starred Tortoises are smuggled out of India to be kept as pets. Their shells are also used to make ashtrays and trays," Kartick Satyanarayan, member, advisory board, Wildlife Crime Control Bureau, said.

Link:http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Earth/Illegal-pet-trade-thrives-/articleshow/4691680.cms

E-Legal Trade In Endangered Species

In the virtual bazar beyond the pale of law, PRERNA SINGH BINDRA traps the illegal traders of wildlife
IT’S SIMPLE, buying peacocks on India’s newest market place for the booming illegal trade in wildlife — cyberspace. It took me just half-a-day; some browsing on the Internet and one phone call to be offered India’s national bird. Adults, and chicks, as many as required. This was through a classified ad website, www.adpost.com, which, among its vast menu, lists ads offering birds for sale, mainly ‘legal’ exotic birds. But that’s only for the public eye, a cover. The real deals are made over through private email and chatrooms. I picked on just one such dealer, Kanpur-based, who had advertised on the site. Within a few hours I — as a potential client — had in my inbox pictures of the birds “I can go ahead and provide”, including Alexandrian and plum-headed parakeets, the trade of which is banned under the Wildlife Protection Act, 1972. Plus a pair of peacock chicks, and a mature male, protected as a Schedule I species, which means they have the same legal cover as the tiger. For all that it matters — available, as they are, at the click of a mouse, from the many dealers trawling their wild ware over the Internet. Another one up for grabs is the star tortoise, also a protected and endemic species, with traders from Chennai “willing to have bulk order of Indian star tortoise”, at $500 per piece on a UK-based website, to those offering a “four Indian star tortoise for sale for good price. Plz write back,” in chatrooms.
The scale of the crime is much wider as a seizure in Meerut on August 26 proved. This is the first conclusive evidence of cyberrun wildlife trade in India that materialised out of months of online tracking by a Delhi-based NGO, the Wildlife Trust of India (WTI). The introduction with the dealer, Jeevan Thakur, was first made through an Orkut chat room. While talk was on for various rare and endemic species, the final deal was struck — through a false email id, fangsofmumba@yahoo.com, to be precise — for peacocks and hill mynas, both falling under Schedule I of the WPA. There was another prize catch — an albino civet cat — also protected by law. Civets are relatively common. This one, being an albino, was rare — if only for the purposes of the market, and the deal, after much bargaining, was arrived at Rs 2.35 lakh. Apparently Thakur had a customer from Dubai who offered Rs 5 lakh, but he preferred to sell in India.
The extent of Thakur’s trade was revealed when his cyber history was investigated — he used online social networks and ads to meet with potential customers, spread across India, the Middle East, Far Eastern countries and Europe. Other destinations where he smuggled wildlife are still being investigated. His booty of illegal menagerie included rare mammals like the slender loris, giant squirrels (primarily for the pet trade) and spiny-tailed lizards (its oil is used for aphrodisiacs). Birds were Thakur’s forte — Shaheen and peregrine falcons, golden orioles, peacocks, parakeets, sunbirds, barbets — you name it, Thakur made it available. Owls have a good market, especially the great horned owl, which fetches a huge price. One trader had even specified the weight he wanted; “1. 5 lakhs for a 3.5 kilos owl (live) for voodoo purpose.” According to Ashok Kumar, vice chairman, WTI, Thakur, and his brother Akash, also an accused in the Meerut case, have been in the business for at least a decade. Emails dating to 2003 reveal that Akash offered a decoy customer, besides endangered birds, python, and the critically endangered female clouded leopard.
“It may sound horrific, but the known cases represent little more than the proverbial tip of the iceberg — so tremendous is the scope of the web, and so little do we know about it, especially in India. There has been no study or survey, unlike in the US, and Europe — which reveals that everything is available on the Internet. Though impossible to quantify, there is no denying that the illegal wildlife trade on the Internet is alive, and growing by the minute,” says BK Sharma, who was formerly attached to the Wildlife Crime unit of the CBI.
While little is known of the extent of the wild web trade in the country, there is intelligence information mainly from overseas official agencies that ivory from South India, and shahtoosh shawls from Kashmir and Delhi are being peddled on the Internet.
This is also an indicator of the change in the profile of the trader — a new generation of tech-savvy peddlers is overtaking the traditional trader who conducted his shady business in the bylanes of old towns or in stuffy backrooms of bird markets in various towns. The market has changed from a ‘physical’ entity to a ‘virtual’ one — hence, more difficult to identify or control. One example being, the sale of a tiger skin that went unnoticed in 2002 on the website baazee.com, (the skin was touted as the world’s largest, up for $1 million) until a story appeared on a news website.
I did a quick browse to find what was on offer online — rare butterflies, beetles, birds, tortoise, turtles, monkeys, rhino horns and ivory artefacts; the last were found on sale on eBay, some claim to be ‘pre-ban’. But an International Fund for Animal Welfare report in 2007 revealed that at least 90 percent of all investigated ivory listings on eBay were legally suspect.
Internationally, illegal wildlife trade is measured at over $25 billion annually, and the virtual world has just widened the market further. To just get an idea of the size of the market, IFAW found more than 9,000 wild animals or products — from live chimpanzees to ivory tusks — for sale in chat rooms and on legitimate trading sites over a one-week period.
THE VOLUME of trade has an ominous impact on India’s wildlife, for this is primarily a source country, the suppliers in this murky business. The product — be it a tortoise or a monkey or cobra skins — may be auctioned online by a dealer based in, say, China or the US, or any part of the world, but it may well have been sourced from India. Take the recent case of two Czech nationals who were accused of unauthorised collecting of rare and protected insect species from the Singhalila National Park in West Bengal. It is reported that they routinely used the Internet to sell their ‘collection’.
The single-most important factor fuelling the wildlife trade on the Internet is anonymity. Most sellers use fake names and addresses and change their email identities frequently. Communications and deals that begin in open fora later shifts to emails, chatrooms, discussion boards etc., making identifying and tracking of the persons responsible a difficult, if not almost impossible, task.
And with negligible web patrolling, endangered species are under the hammer in the virtual world, for sale to the highest bidder — dead or alive. •
From Tehelka Magazine, Vol 5, Issue 37, Dated Sept 20, 2008

http://www.tehelka.com/story_main40.asp?filename=Ne200908E-LegalTrade.asp

Minister spots the tiger, clears aircraft and sensors for Corbett

Neha Sinha Posted: Tuesday , Jun 16, 2009 at 0413 hrs IST(Indian Express)

CORBETT: Years ago, he went to Periyar tiger reserve in Kerala, Sunderbans tiger reserve in West Bengal and Ranthambhore tiger reserve in Rajasthan, but he couldn’t spot a tiger. Then after taking Independent charge as Minister for Environment and Forests, one of the first official trips Jairam Ramesh made was to the Bhadra tiger reserve in Karnataka to see India’s most famous animal. But the tiger eluded him again. Last Saturday, the Minister got his wish — he saw two tigresses in the Corbett tiger reserve.
So it was appropriate that he cleared an ambitious plan for Corbett in Uttarakhand, on the lines never seen before for tiger conservation. He is now working to get Corbett its very own microlight aircraft for surveillance and monitoring, along with a net of motion sensors. Technology, the Minister says, gives a “psychological edge” over poachers.
“Most of the world’s tigers are here in India,” said Ramesh. “If we need to get ahead of poachers, we need to think out of the box. And whatever innovations we do, we have to start here at Corbett, which is like the Taj Mahal of India’s tiger reserves. This place has most of India’s tigers,” he told The Indian Express.
He has now cleared a Rs 8.5-crore Comprehensive Security Plan for Corbett, which will pan out over the next six years. “This is a big area and mobility is a problem. The microlight aircraft will be used for surveillance and also during times of emergency. We need connectivity and mobility which such an aircraft can bring. Apart from Corbett, we also will bring in this aircraft at the Namdapha tiger reserve in Arunachal Pradesh, which suffers from lack of connectivity,” he said.
The sensors all over the reserve will monitor movement, especially in areas used for illegal entry and exit by poachers. These were part of the security plan for Corbett proposed by the Uttarakhand Forest Department which has been cleared by the Ministry. Corbett, as per the 2007 All India Tiger Estimation, has the maximum tigers in the world — between 160-200 in the 1,000-square-km landscape. Funds are also being moved for a new museum for Corbett in Ramnagar.
On his visit, Ramesh interacted with Van Gujjars, a community traditionally living in the forest, but after a 2006 Amendment to the Wildlife Protection Act now being moved out of the reserve with a compensation package. In the last Budget, then Finance Minister P Chidambaram announced a Rs 50 crore one-time budgetary allocation for a Special Tiger Protection Force (TPF), which would set up a battalion to protect and patrol tiger reserves.
Ramesh is now looking at making a change to include Van Gujjars. A tiger reserve like Corbett is slated to have around 110 men as part of the TPF. “The TPF has been envisaged as a police force but conservation has to be site-specific. Thrusting outsiders or an armed, uniformed force will not always work. Only when local people are given an economic stake in conservation will our policies work. The Van Gujjars I have met are able-bodied, they know the ways of the forest. They should be the first to be part of the TPF.” The Minister has also asked for 181 Van Gujjar families to be moved out of Corbett tiger reserve in the next two months.
Meanwhile, tiger-spotting remains Ramesh’s favourite part. He spotted his first tigers on Saturday atop an elephant in Corbett’s core area — a tigress with her sub-adult cub. “You could say I spotted a tigress and a half. The sub-adult tigress was rather excitable but the mother was very peaceful. This is a great moment.”

Ref :http://www.indianexpress.com/news/minister-spots-the-tiger-clears-aircraft-and-sensors-for-corbett/477246/0

Tigress found dead in Nagarhole Tiger Reserve

MYSORE: Close on the heels of the forest department officials seizing tiger skin at Mangala near Gundulpet, a tigress was found dead in Nagarhole national park on Thursday. The carcass of the tigress was examined by veterinarians, who have concluded that the wild cat died due to natural reasons. There are no external marks on the animal either, Nagarhole DCF D Yatish Kumar said. The carcass was noticed by the forest guards on patrol in Antarasanthe range of the tiger reserve. The DCF and ACF visited the spot and inspected the site. The animal is believed to be 12 years old. This is the second case of tiger death reported from Nagarhole-Bandipur tiger reserves in recent times. A month ago, the forest officials seized the skin of a tiger skin, which was suspected to have been poached inside the Bandipur national park.

(Note: From the November 2008 the incidents of tiger deaths and recoveries of tiger carcass started in the major tiger reserves of the country. More than 10 tigers died un-naturally in Kaziranga, 6 in Kanha, 3-4 in Corbett, 2-3 in Ranthambhore, similarly it happend in other tiger reserves also. Most of the deaths were concluded as natural deaths or due to infighting. The post-mortem were done hastily and finally the carcass were burnt in most of the cases, consequently the NTCA has issued a comprehensive guideline for the preliminary examination of the dead tiger by an expert team including a veterinarian and the disposal mechanism of the tiger carcass.

What do these deaths indicate? Has sensitivity to take tiger deaths seriously been drastically gone down in the field? Are the reserves lacking the required 'spirit' of tiger conservation in the present situation ?

Even after some good news relating tiger breeding in Ranthambhore and some other tiger reserves and tiger re-locations excercises in Sariska and Panna, the recent deaths of the tigers and the above raised questions have demoralised the conservationists and all those who really wish to see the tiger alive in our country for generations to come. Still we have time and I do hope for the best.-Ramesh Pandey)

News Reference: http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Mysore/Tigress-found-dead/articleshow/4622616.cms

Increase in reptile smuggling worries wildlife officials

New Delhi (PTI): An alarming increase in the smuggling of reptiles such as monitor lizards, snakes and turtles in the Tarai belt of Uttar Pradesh bordering Nepal has prompted the Wildlife Crime Control Bureau to issue an alert.
"We fear that there is possible involvement of an organised nexus of cross-border poachers who are swiftly smuggling the reptiles to the international market via Nepal route where political instability has made their task easier," Ramesh Pandey of WCCB told PTI.
He was of the view that the new emerging pattern in wildlife trade from the region that borders with Nepal as well as the state of Uttarakhand need to be tracked.
"Going by a large number of seizures of turtles, sand boas (snake species) and monitor lizards, it seems the trade appears to be controlled by an organized nexus with the help of locals. We have issued alert in the state to keep the officials on their guard," Mr. Pandey said.
He said since the species are found in non-forest areas as well, quiet often the criminals take advantage of the ignorance of the officers on duty, who are at times oblivious to the changing wildlife crime trends in the international market.
http://www.hindu.com/thehindu/holnus/001200906101601.htm (for news attached)

http://www.traveljournals.net/pictures/65696.html (for photograph attached)

Minister visits NTCA and other wildlife offices

Mr Jairam Ramesh, MoS, MoEF, Government of India visited National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) office at Bikaner House Annexe in the recent past. The Hon. Minister also took a glance of the offices of Central Zoo Authority (CZA) and Wildlife Crime Control Bureau (WCCB), Northern Region.

He discussed with Dr. Rajesh Gopal and the other officials on tiger and wildlife conservation issues. During his visit Dr Rajesh Gopal (IG/MS, NTCA), Dr B R Sharma (MS, CZA), Mr S P Yadav (DIG/JD, NTCA) and Mr Ramesh Pandey (RDD-NR, WCCB) were present.

(Ref news:http://www.hindu.com/thehindu/holnus/002200906042026.htm)

Youtube video link (NDTV News):http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IyFikFkuMQo

As Tigers Disappear, Poachers Turn to Leopards in India

Paroma Basu in New Delhi, Indiafor National Geographic News
December 3, 2008
A recent flurry of leopard-skin seizures by Indian wildlife authorities suggests that as tigers decline, poachers are increasingly on the prowl for the country's other big cat. At least 141 leopards have fallen to poaching so far in 2008, compared to 124 leopards killed in 2007. In contrast, 24 tigers were killed so far this year, according to the New Delhi-based nonprofit Wildlife Protection Society of India. About 27 of those skins have been taken in just the past few months. Leopard poaching numbers have fluctuated in the 14 years the wildlife society has worked on the issue, in part due to enforcement activity. Many leopard deaths go undetected, said Tito Joseph, program manager at the society. "The situation is serious," Joseph said.
But the increased number of seizures may be due to improved wildlife enforcement and agency coordination, rather than an actual rise in leopard killings, said Ramesh Pandey, deputy director of the government's new Wildlife Crime Control Bureau. Authorities seize between 150 to 200 leopard skins and bodies from around the country every year—implying a steady market for leopard skins and parts. Even so "there is no doubt that the leopard is under threat," Pandey said.

Cheaper than Tigers :Indian leopard skin and parts largely wind up in China, traveling via Nepal, experts say. The skin serves various decorative purposes, while leopard bones and other parts are most likely masqueraded as tiger products and sold for use in traditional Chinese medicine, said Joseph of the wildlife society.But as India's tiger population has dwindled to just 1,411 individuals—most of them in protected reserves—it is getting more cost-effective for traders to get into the leopard business, experts say.

"There is increased value for leopard shins, claws, bones, and penises because it is getting much harder to catch tigers," said Kartick Satyanarayan, co-founder of Wildlife SOS, a nonprofit animal rescue group in New Delhi that works with the Indian government to nab poachers.
Adaptable Predators: It's also easier to catch leopards because they are more plentiful than tigers. Although there is still no official estimate on leopard populations in India, wildlife advocates guess the population could be anywhere between 10,000 to 20,000. A detailed leopard census will be carried out over the next three years, experts say. Unlike tigers, which prefer to live deep in the jungle, nocturnal and solitary leopards can adapt easily to a variety of landscapes. That includes, increasingly, the fringes of human settlements.
It's this adaptability that has also made leopards vulnerable to run-ins with humans, said Rajesh Gopal, member secretary of the government's National Tiger Conservation Authority, which has been allotted more than U.S. $1 billion over the next five years to protect both big cat species in India.
Farmer Conflicts:While poachers are responsible for supplying at least half of all leopard skins and parts to China, leopards killed by farmers and landowners provide another source.
As leopard habitat shrinks, more of the predators are attacking livestock for food.
Although the government compensates farmers who lose livestock to wildlife, payments usually take so long to arrive that villagers take matters into their own hands. For instance, reports of leopards being poisoned to death are more and more common. In November, a five-year-old leopard was found dead after a suspected poisoning near the town of Gūdalūr, in southern India.
The wildlife society estimates that at least 38 leopards have died in similar situations in India this year, a marked increase from 2000, when about 14 leopards died from human conflicts.
"When leopards become a nuisance, many villagers resort to poisoning them and then selling the bodies off to traders for a pittance," said Gopal of the conservation authority. "These [skins and body parts] then end up in big trading hub centers like Nāgpur [a central Indian city] or New Delhi before crossing the border and going away. All this is no secret."
Solutions:Ensuring the faster delivery of compensation payments to farmers and creating alternative livelihoods for poacher groups would both slow the big cat trade, Gopal said.
But authorities must also agree on changing the way land is used, for example by creating managed buffer zones in which humans and animals could peacefully co-exist. "There are still healthy populations of leopards," Gopal said. "So even if we wake up right now, we can still save all these precious animals from getting extinct."

http://www.thaindian.com/newsportal/entertainment/tiger-decline-makes-poachers-increase-leopard-hunting-in-india_100127001.html
Photo Credit: (C) Rahul Dutta, Traffic India, Web Ref: http://www.panda.org/who_we_are/wwf_offices/bhutan/news/?124200

Authorities stress on need for cross-border cooperation to fight wildlife trade

Delhi, June 2, 2009: Nepali and Indian wildlife conservation authorities have recommended trans-border cooperation as an urgent requirement to tackle illegal wildlife trade across the porous Indo-Nepal border.
The recommendation was one of the several outcomes of the two-day workshop on ‘wildlife enforcement and law’ organised last week by the Uttar Pradesh Forest Department and IFAW-WTI (International Fund for Animal Welfare – Wildlife Trust of India). The workshop, held at Dudhwa Tiger Reserve in the northern Indian state of Uttar Pradesh, was attended by representatives of the Forest Department, Police and NGOs from India as well as Nepal, and the Indian Sashastra Seema Bal (SSB) responsible for guarding the Indo-Nepal border.
With emphasis on control of cross-border illegal trade across the Indo-Nepal border, the workshop addressed issues like wildlife trade in Dudhwa-Pilibhit areas, wildlife conservation laws of the two countries, ways to apprehend wildlife criminals and successfully fight court cases against them, identification of wildlife materials, CITES and its application and improved intra- as well as international cooperation.
Ramesh Pandey, Deputy Director Northern Region, Wildlife Crime Control Bureau, spoke on the need and ways to stop organised wildlife crime and movement of wandering gangs. “There is a general upward movement in wildlife trade across this region. Wildlife articles, notably those of mammals including large carnivores, elephants, rhinos etc, are smuggled from India to sink countries like China and Southeast Asian countries with Nepal as conduit. Cross border movement of poaching gangs and tribals in the Indo-Nepal border will have to be monitored and investigated systematically to ensure that none of those involved go free,” he said.
Among other recommendations, the authorities of the two countries also concurred on institutionalised information sharing, development of common database of wildlife criminals and increasing awareness of local people on both sides of the border.
Nepal and India share a 1850 km-long international boundary, which is mostly unrestricted. Cross-border wildlife crime and operations of criminals through the Indo-Nepal international border is one of the menacing threats to wildlife in India as well as in Nepal.
“Illegal wildlife traders have easy access to safety with the open international border between India and Nepal, but enforcement officials on both sides of the border are generally helpless due to diplomatic restraints and lack of capacity, leading to wildlife criminals going unhindered on most occasions,” said Ashok Kumar, Vice-chairman, WTI.
“There is an urgent need for coordinated approach between authorities of the two countries to tackle cross border illegal wildlife activities. This was the aim of the worshop… to facilitate coordination and understanding among relevant authorities across the border,” he added.
By: Sheren Shrestha,Wildlife Trust of India,http://www.mediaforfreedom.com/ReadArticle.asp?ArticleID=15847

Independent team during post mortems of tiger deaths

Hindustan Times

Thursday, 30 April, 2009

National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) has asked the field directors of tiger reserves on April 22 to ensure the presence of an independent team of observers during post mortems carried out in case of tiger deaths.
Dr Rajesh Gopal, member secretary of the authority, told Hindustan Times, “The order was circulated to ensure transparency in tiger death cases. An independent team will be present during post mortem proceedings to find out the actual reasons of tiger deaths.”
The team will consist of a representative of NTCA, the veterinary officer of the reserve or the district concerned and a non-governmental expert nominated by the Chief Wildlife Warden of the state.
According to NTCA authorities, tiger carcasses should never be burnt after death. “all tiger carcasses should be preserved in a deep freezer till an independent team analyses the cause of death,” NTCA said, adding that it would help fund the purchase of deep freezers, power generators and other accessories under the centrally sponsored scheme of Project Tiger.
Ramesh Pandey, deputy director of the Wildlife Crime Control Bureau, said, “We are already investigating two cases of tiger poaching at the Kaziranga and Kanha national parks. There are several cases where tiger deaths were termed as natural although they had been killed by poachers.”
The NTCA authorities, too, admitted that the actual reasons of tiger deaths were not investigated transparently. Dr Gopal said, “We need to further strengthen our role. Once the reason of a tiger death is traced, we can plan actions to prevent them.”

(Note: In last six months in most of the well known tiger reserves there were deaths of the tigers reported from the park authorities mainly due to infighting and natural deaths. Recently the NTCA has issued instructions to keep the tiger dead body in deep freezer unless a team consisting of NTCA, NGO and FD visits the spot with Vets and carry out the post-mortem and fact finding excercise.---Ramesh Pandey)

Terai V: Katarniaghat

Katarniaghat Wildlife Sanctuary: It’s an auspicious day in Katarniaghat Wildlife Sanctuary, a part of Dudhwa Tiger Reserve. A truck arrived last night, carrying precious cargo—ghairals. That long-snouted extreme-looking crocodile that ranks amongst the most endangered animals on earth, with less than 200 breeding adults. These were 60 babies, reared at the Kukrail breeding centre in Lucknow, and are here to be released in the wild. We did that, with some ceremony on the banks of the river Girwa. Lifted the lid of the box, and watched them crawl, then swim—with some vacillation. It was, after all, their first taste of flowing waters—so essential to their survival—and freedom.This would not have been possible in Girwa less than five-years-back. Oh, there were gharials here —Girwa is amongst the three places in the country where gharials survive in fair numbers. But there was no new recruitment, the nests were raided, and the eggs stolen and eaten by the local villagers. “Not one survived,” informs Ajay Singh, a forest guard. It wasn’t just the gharials. The forest was under siege. Illicit felling and smuggling for wood was rampant, and backed by the timber mafia and local politicians. Permit to fell trees within the land-dwellings in an around the sanctuary were being used to illegally smuggle wood. The forest staff was involved and there were no less than 70 disciplinary proceedings against the staff. Poaching was the order of the day. Poachers used the local gun called bharoi-a shot is enough to stun an elephant. They would walk in from Nepal, and carry back their booty, even as the foresters watched. Evidently, signs of wildlife were rare. Game was being decimated for meat. And tigers…they were there. Very few, very shadowy- they were stalked..and killed-by man.Katarniaghat, at the time was a sanctuary that wasn’t. Then in 2005, the management changed. The park had a new director. This is not an ode to the purpose, and efforts of a leader, with his team. But is an attempt to record how with determination a ravaged forest can be turned around and made a haven. It is a lesson, a ray of hope. Circa 2009: I am in Girwa—a little upset that I had missed sighting the tiger-sighting, yet happy to see their signature-pugmarks of a mother and cub. A snout pops up besides us—to reveal another rare creature. Gangetic dolphins. Six of them, twirling around our boat. Ghairals line the bank, huge ones, tiny ones, male, female-about 60 in all. In the past five years, points out the boatman Ramroop,” the hatchlings have increased from nil to 27 nests in 2008. I cross over to trans-Girwa—to meet Panditji, who runs a ramshackle tea-shop. “His shop was toppled over by elephants,” says forester Ashfaq, with a hint of pride. The elephants are new entrants, as is the other pachyderm, the rhinoceros. Earlier occasional visitors from Nepal, now a few have taken refuge here from the insurgency which ravaged their forests. You could see a herd of 40 or so swamp deer-only found in this part of the world. And best of all—tigers were breeding—a sure sign of a healthy forest. In the recent All India Tiger Census, the camera recorded 20 different tigers in the sample size of 100 sq km—amongst the highest density of tigers in the world. How the turnaround was achieved is difficult to encapsulate in limited words, but one shall try. Wood permits were stopped, completely—there was a crackdown on timber smuggling, at the cost of threats to job, and life—after all the ‘business’ ran into an estimated 50 lakhs per day. The nexus with the police and the forest staff was broken. The staff was motivated, trained in wildlife, basic supplies like mosquito nets, jackets, shoes, vehicles for patrol etc were purchased. Tigers were constantly monitored, and a systematic method developed for the same. Grazing was stopped. Infiltration for feulwood, and poaching from the Nepal side was stopped with the help of the SSB. “Most importantly, we cracked down the tiger poaching gangs, the Bawarias who had been operating here for some years now, “ says Ramesh Pandey, former DFO, Katarniaghat. It was a February 2005 seizure of tiger skin and bones that provided the first clue. A network of informants was established. There were two more seizures, some arrests. A key poacher, Pratap confessed that they were here to kill tigers—to be supplied to Rani, the wife of Sansar Chand, the kingpin of wildlife trade. Investigations led to another key find that had ominous repercussions—the Bawarias were not just operating here in the Terai, but had spread their tentacles and were poaching in reserves across the country-as far as Periyar in Kerala, and in the North-east. “Simply put, strict protection with no compromises, effective management and leadership ensured that Katarniaghat thrived,” says Dabeer Hasan, Katarniaghat Welfare Society. Of course, threats persist in Katarniaghat. Primarily, the Central Seed Farm spread over 38 sq km in the heart of the reserve. A road and a railway line cuts through the reserve—and has caused fatal accidents-including two tigers in recent times. Most worrying, the slack in strict protection is slipping-cattle grazes freely, and we help drive away some ‘visitors’ here from across the border-with head loads of wood. Intelligence information is that poachers are waiting to strike and an alert has been issued from the MoEF for strict vigilance.That Katarniaghat contains nearly 40 tigers makes it significant enough, besides the fact that it is a critical connect between the Royal Bardia Park in Nepal, and Dudhwa. What makes this park special is that it contains within its compact 440 sq km endangered megafauna like the tiger, rhino, leopard, elephant, swamp deer, gharial, dolphins, mugger essentially representing all the flagship species of the Terai. You could say it is a mosaic of the Terai, as it once was, before the invasion of man. That it survives, inspite of all the odds is the result of the blood and toil, and sacrifice of many—and the legacy must carry on…Save Katarniaghat:• Remove the Central Seed Farm to free critical habitat for wildlife• Remove villages inside the sanctuary, especially Bhartapur, with the enhanced relocation package• Alternate routes for the railway line (which has been proposed), and the road• Trans-border vigilance, strict protection• Fill staff shortage, timely funds
Posted by prerna singh bindra at http://www.indianaturally.blogspot,com/

(Note: Ms Prerna Singh Bindra is one of the well known journalists/writers in the field of wildlife in our country. She recently covered extensively almost complete strech of Indian Terai, starting from Kalesa-Rajaji to Katerniaghat-Valmiki, and has very well written on all of these wildlife areas, regarding condition of the parks, vital issues, conservation initiatives, management constraints etc. which have got published in a series "Terai I to VI"(The Pioneer:New Delhi). The same is also available on her blog www.indianaturally.blogspot.com. The piece on Katerniaghat is being posted here for wider circulation.---Ramesh Pandey)

ASEAN, partners to stop illegal wildlife trade

With illegal trade in wildlife estimated at over $10 billion across Asia, the 10 Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) governments and international partners have signed a manifesto to stop illegal wildlife trade and arrest traffickers in the region.
The signing of the new wildlife Manifesto, "Combating Wildlife Crime in Asia," marked the conclusion of the two-day ASEAN-Wildlife Enforcement Network Conference which was participated in by ASEAN government delegations and representatives from about 20 countries, including 10 non-ASEAN countries, international organizations, and numerous non-government organizations active in wildlife and biodiversity preservation.
Dubbed "A Forgotten Crisis: Arresting Wildlife Depletion through Strengthened Partnerships and Regional Cooperation," the meeting was held in Pattaya, Thailand from April 10 to 12 amid the massive anti-government protests.
"The Manifesto will help develop the Southeast Asia and South Asia wildlife enforcement networks into fully effective and sustainable platforms. These will have specially trained wildlife crime task forces within the national police forces and other enforcement agencies to track, monitor, investigate and share cross-border information and to stop illegal wildlife trade and arrest traffickers in the region," the ASEAN Secretariat said in a statement.
ASEAN-WEN is the region’s largest environmental law-enforcement network. It links scores of environmental agencies, police organizations, customs bureaus and members of the judiciary from all 10 ASEAN member countries to share intelligence, conduct investigations, and train officers to combat wildlife trafficking and implement international and national laws regulating wildlife trade.
The ASEAN Secretariat noted that over $10 billion illegal trade in wildlife has thrived across Asia, second only to weapons and drug smuggling.
ASEAN Secretary-General Dr. Surin Pitsuwan, one of the supporters of the new manifesto, urged ASEAN governments and international partners to carefully protect the "unique, diverse, and rich" biodiversity in the region as he thanked World Bank for extending assistance to the ASEAN-WEN for wildlife protection.
"We must all work together to conserve our natural heritage. I commend the World Bank for its strong support to ASEAN-WEN to prevent and combat against the threat to the wildlife of ASEAN and Asia," he said.
For his part, Thai Minister of Natural Resources and Environment Suwit Khunkitti said: "Just as the financial crisis has shown that our economies are all intricately related, wildlife crime and its impacts are cross-border and global. All Asian countries, as well as non-Asian countries, must come together to solve this forgotten crisis."
The Thai Ministry offered to set up a ministerial steering group of tiger range states this year, which is a significant change and signals high-level political support for the recommendations of the Manifesto.
Last year, the World Bank launched the Global Tiger Initiative, along with the Smithsonian Institution, the Global Environment Facility, and the International Tiger Coalition, as an international collaborative platform dedicated to saving wild tigers and mainstreaming biodiversity.
Preparations for the Year of the Tiger Summit in 2010 are underway as the meeting will bring high-level political commitment to save the wild tigers, Asia’s religious and cultural icon, and the symbol of environmental sustainability.
"Despite the efforts of individual governments and conservation organizations, wild tigers and many other endangered wildlife species are silently disappearing from the Asian landscape.
By CHARISSA M. LUCI, Manila Bulletin
April 15, 2009, 5:36pm

(Note: The wildlife crime and illegal trade of wildlife part and products is the biggest problem in conserving our depleting natural resources all over Asia. There was a three days workshop on 'combating wildlife crime in South East Asian and South Asia' in Pattaya, Thailand, attended by the representative of 21 countries and various NGOs and IGOs.--Ramesh Pandey)

India's wild medicinal plants threatened through over-exploitation

India is a hub of the wild-collected plant medicine industry in Asia, but key species have declined owing to over-collection to supply domestic and foreign medicinal markets, and action needs to be taken to ensure the sustainability of supplies, finds a new study released today by TRAFFIC, the wildlife trade monitoring network. The study, commissioned by the German Federal Agency for Nature Conservation (Bundesamt für Naturschutz, BfN), focuses on seven plant species of conservation concern protected under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES).Wild plant species form the foundation of healthcare practices throughout much of Asia, particularly traditional practices, such as traditional Chinese medicine, Ayurveda, Siddha, Unani and Tibetan medicines, whilst compounds such as reserpine from Snakeroot and paclitaxel from Himalayan Yew have important pharmaceutical uses in Europe, North America and elsewhere. Some species are in demand for their aromatic properties too, for example the use of Jatamansi oil dates back over a thousand years, whilst Red Sanders is also in demand for its timber and as a source of red dye. In India, collection and processing of medicinal plants contributes at least 35 million workdays per year to the poor and under-employed, but rising demand is threatening this vital source of livelihood income both in India and elsewhere. Many of the medicinal plants in trade in India are collected in alpine regions of neighbouring Nepal, where collection of species such as Jatamansi and Kutki runs to hundreds of tonnes of rhizomes, harvested by thousands of collectors who supply middlemen to large-scale wholesalers in Nepal and India. Raw materials are often transported on to wholesale markets in Delhi, Amritsar and Kolkata for onward sale."With regard to trade in Himalayan medicinal plants most, though not all, roads lead to India, which is both a major manufacturing centre and end consumer market," said TRAFFIC's Teresa Mulliken, an author of the report. India has a highly developed herbal and pharmaceutical products manufacturing industry, although trade patterns are shifting for some species and China is a growing manufacturing centre for products such as taxanes (derived from Taxus spp). Researchers from TRAFFIC and IUCN, the International Union for the Conservation of Nature, examined the trade in seven medicinal plants species with very different life histories, uses and trade patterns, to give a broad overview of Asia's medicinal plant trade. India emerged as a major destination for trade in all but two of the seven species studied---Desert Cistanche and Himalayan Yew. But all seven species are declining through over-harvesting, although not necessarily of the plants themselves. For example, Desert Cistanche, native to China and Mongolia, is also declining because the trees it parasitizes are harvested for timber, fuelwood and fodder. All the species are protected under national legislation and international trade controls-the latter through listing in CITES, which requires international trade to be maintained within sustainable levels, but despite these measures, wild populations continue to decline.As Mulliken noted: "Although controls on the collection and trade in medicinal plants exist to bring harvesting levels within sustainable levels, their implementation is frequently poor."Cultivation is routinely promoted as the answer to dwindling supplies and over-collection of wild medicinal plants, and research into cultivation has been carried out for all seven species studied. "Cultivation may appear to be the answer, but it's not always that straightforward," noted Mulliken. "Some species are difficult to grow in artificial conditions and cultivation may be unprofitable for farmers owing to the long growing time between planting and commercial harvest." Growing times for some species can be several years. "Much less emphasis is being put on development and promotion of sustainable wild collection practices, which may be the only viable option to ensure sustainable supplies of some of these species," said Mulliken.TRAFFIC, BfN, the IUCN/SSC Medicinal Plant Specialist Group (MPSG) and WWF Germany recently launched a new standard on the sustainable collection of wild plants (International Standard for Sustainable Collection of Wild Medicinal and Aromatic Plants, ISSC-MAP), which is currently under trial at several projects worldwide including one in Uttarakhand in the Western Himalayas and one in Karnataka in the Western Ghats.

1) The full report Review of the Status, Harvest, Trade and Management of Seven Asian CITES-listed Medicinal and Aromatic Plant Species (PDF, 1.7 MB)2) The seven species studied for the report were:Desert Cistanche Cistanche deserticola, native to China and Mongolia, its dried stems have been used for thousands of years in traditional Chinese medicine to treat a variety of conditions including kidney problems, constipation, impotence, and infertility. Elephant's Foot Dioscorea deltoidea, native to Afghanistan, Bhutan, Cambodia, China, India, Lao PDR, Nepal, Pakistan, Thailand and Viet Nam, the dried rhizomes are used both as traditional medicine in higher elevation regions of Nepal, Bhutan, northern India and Pakistan and southwestern China to treat a variety of mainly gastric problems, and as a source of steroidal drugs for western medicine. Jatamansi Nardostachys grandiflora, native to China, Bhutan, India and Nepal, the roots and rhizomes have been used for centuries in India in the treatment of fits and heart palpitations, to treat constipation and regulate urination, menstruation and digestion. Kutki Picrorhiza kurrooa, native to India and Pakistan, whose rhizomes are widely used in Ayurvedic and Unani traditional medicines in India as an antibiotic and to treat liver ailments.Red Sanders Pterocarpus santalinus, native to India, its heartwood is used in the treatment of diabetes and to reduce inflammation, and the timber is used to make furniture and as a source of red dye. Snakeroot Rauvolfia serpentina, native to Bangladesh, Bhutan, China, Indonesia, India, Lao PDR, Malaysia, Myanmar, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Thailand and Viet Nam, the roots have been used for centuries in India in the treatment of various central nervous disorders, including anxiety states, maniacal behaviour associated with psychosis, schizophrenia, insanity, insomnia, and epilepsy. Extracts are also used for the treatment of intestinal disorders and as an anthelmintic. Himalayan Yew Taxus wallichiana, native to Afghanistan, Bhutan, China, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Myanmar, Nepal, Pakistan, the Philippines and Viet Nam, the bark and leaves are used in India in Unani medicine as a sedative, an aphrodisiac, and for the treatment of respiratory diseases and snake bites and scorpion stings, whilst in Ayurvedic medicine it is used in the treatment of headache, diarrhoea and other ailments. In recent years, it has been used as a source of taxanes, which have found worldwide use in the treatment of certain cancers.

Note: It is an old report published by the Traffic-the wildlife trade monitoring network in 2008, But it reveals that how the plant species are also under threat of extinction due to over-exploitation. In a latest study done by the Mr Maylynn Engler (Ref:Traffic Bulletin, Vol 22 No 1, 2008), the value of international wildlife trade, based on import declaration, was estimated to equivalent to about 158.9 billion USD (Broad et al, 2003). This is equivalent to about 195 billion USD at 2005 prices. Based on 2005 import declaration, international wildlife trade was estimated to be worth nearly USD 332.5 billion USD representing an increase of about 70% over the 1995 value, adjusted for inflation. This is equivalent to an average increase of 5.5 % per year, over ten years, or roughly the rate of growth of the world economy as a whole over the period.

This may suggest the global supply is keeping up with demand, volumes in trade may not rise as quickly as prices if resources are becoming scarcer.

The studies reveal tha fact that the plant and animal species which are being traditionally used in oriental or chinese medicines are being exploited and traded illegally across the border. The concern is certainly on wild animals but plants like Kuth, Jata mansi, Kurroo, Sarpgandha, Agar etc are highly in demand.

There is need to be watch ful on the exploitation and trade of such plant species, which may get extinct due to over exploitation and increasing demand in traditional medicine markets all over the world.

-Ramesh Pandey, New Delhi

Radio tagging to track Nepal's endangered gharials

One of the world's largest crocodilian species is also its rarest. With just a few hundred individuals left, the critically endangered gharial (Gavialis gangeticus) faces an uncertain future in its remaining river habitats in India and Nepal. Once common, gharials were hunted into near extinction for their skins inthe early 20th century. Since then, captive-bred gharials have been released into rivers by the hundreds, but survival rates have been low, probably because so little was known about the species. Last year, more than 100 gharials mysteriously died in India. While the cause of death has never been conclusively proven, scientists at the time hypothesized that they died of gout (a build up of uric acid, a waste product), brought on by kidney failure, which itself was brought on by exposure to toxic chemicals in India's polluted rivers. Now, scientists in Nepal are trying to find out as much information as possible about their country's gharials so they can devise a plan to keep this increasingly rare species from disappearing forever. The project started a few weeks ago, when Nepal's Department of National Parks and Wildlife Conservation, in collaboration with WWF Nepal, attached RFID tags to 14 gharials and re-released them in the Rapti River. The project, set to run through December, will gather information about gharial habitats and behavior, says Rinjan Shrestha, a WWF Nepal conservation biologist. Shrestha says that "habitat degradation, overfishing and water pollution"are the main reasons for gharial decline in Nepal."The radio tags are used to locate the position of the released gharials,"says Shrestha. Once located, the monitoring crew will record the gharials'GPS positions. "We have to localize every tag manually, with a directional antenna," says Antoine Cadi, a project manager at Awely, an environmental NGO in France, who is providing technical assistance for the program. "This method is less expensive than satellite tracking and gives us the opportunity to follow the behavior of the crocs."The team will try to locate the gharials daily until July, when monsoon season begins, "then do our best during the raining period," Cadi says, noting that researchers will step up efforts again in September to gauge the impact of monsoon flooding on the shrinking population. Cadi believes that monsoon season may drive gharials from Nepal's into India, where they could face greater threats. "Every day theyare pushed down the river... and, after some months, they can not avoid crossing the dam," he says, "and finally arriving in India, where all thethreats known in Nepal are more important and strong."

Note: This news story was written by John Platt Mar 12, 2009 regarding new development related to gharial conservation, which was posted by Janki Lenin on GCA/GMTF mailing list.

The similar efforts are being taken in the recent past in Chambal (India) by WWF-India under 'River Watch' programme, in which Drub Basu is monitoring the gharials movement and all. Recently gharials were released in upper ganga near Narora with the active involvement of Bivash Ranjan, Conservator of Forests, Meerut and Parikshit Gautam (WWF). And the credit goes to Rom Whittaker that 'Crocodile blues' which was aired recently on 'Animal Planet' drew the attention of many of us regarding the extinction of gharials from their centuries old natural habitats. Another research is being done by Laurel and Abhijit (under the supervision of Rom) regarding the behaviour of Gharials at Katerniaghat. This is true we still do not know many thinks related to the behaviou of the gharial and their population dynamics.

But all these measures are insufficient to save just 200 left breeding gharial population in the country. The problems like mining, indiscriminate fishing, poaching, water pollution and loss of breeding grounds in their natural habitat are of very serious nature, which does not need research right now, rather they need concrete steps to save this diminishing species from the nature. This is not the time to know how gharial behaves with muggar or where do they go when the flooded rivers carry away everything with them. This is the time to give them protection at fullest extent, un-polluted water in the rivers and mining and predation free sandy banks to lay the eggs. The next breeding season will strart from April, which is just ahead and we dont know what will be the result this year. Lets hope good for gharial.

-Ramesh Pandey, New Delhi

Sumatran tiger faces extinction as forest habitat shrinks

The Sumatran tiger is in danger of becoming the first major mammal to become extinct in the 21st century, as villagers on the Indonesian island fight a deadly war with the magnificent but ferocious predator.
At least four tigers, and nine people, have been killed in the past month alone, as the shrinking of Sumatra’s already depleted forests brings an increase in attacks on farmers, hunters and illegal loggers.
With fewer than 400 of the creatures estimated to be left in the wild, the Sumatran tiger is classified as critically endangered, the most vulnerable of all the six surviving tiger subspecies.
The fact that several victims of the recent attacks have been devoured by the tigers, which usually have little taste for human flesh, suggests how hungry and desperate they are becoming, as economic exploitation of their habitat confines them in ever smaller and more impoverished patches of jungle.
As the tiger attacks become more common, conservationists are hurrying to trap man-eating animals humanely, and release them away from human habitation, before terrified villagers hunt them down and kill them.
“As people encroach into tiger habitat, it's creating a crisis situation and further threatening this critically endangered subspecies,” Ian Kosasih of the conservation group WWF, said. “In light of these killings, officials have got to make public safety a top concern and put a stop to illegal clearance of forests in Sumatra.”
According to the Indonesian government, between five and ten tigers are killed on average every year, but the scale of the slaughter in 2009 is on course to be higher than ever. A male tiger was speared to death a week ago after attacking a security guard on a palm oil plantation in the Indragiri Hilir area of Jambi province, the fourth animal to be killed this year.
Three young tigers were killed in February in neighbouring Riau province, after wandering into a village in search of food. Another Sumatran tiger was successfully trapped by conservationists.
But at least six people have been mauled to death and several more attacked and injured. In the grisliest attack, a 50-year-old man named Suyud was killed in his hut, which he shared with his 21-year-old son Imam Mujianto. The young man was consumed by the creature, which ate his brain, heart and liver, according to local reports.
“The shocking news that six people have been killed in less than one month is an extremely sad illustration of how bad the situation has become in Jambi,” said Didy Wurjanto, the head of the Jambi province Nature Conservancy Agency. “It’s a signal that we need to get serious about protecting natural forest and giving tigers their space.”
The number of tigers across the world has declined by 95 per cent in the past century, and three subspecies have become extinct, including the two others native to Indonesia – the Bali tiger and the Javan tiger, which was seen in the wild as late as the 1970s.
Poachers hunt them for their skins and other body parts which are a prized ingredient in traditional Asian medicines – the bodies of the animals killed in Sumatra in the past weeks quickly disappeared, and a tiger corpse is worth $3,200 (£2,200), a small fortune for an Indonesian villager.
But there is also less and less room for tigers, who require large areas in which to prowl, hunt and mate. Road building, farming, the timber industry and, particularly in Sumatra, the clearing of jungle to create lucrative palm oil plantations, is driving tigers into smaller islands of natural forest.
Sumatra’s lowland forests are shrinking at the rate of 2,700 sq km every year, an area larger than Luxemburg.
“You can't expect tigers to become vegetarians,” Nurazman Nurdin of the Nature Conservation Agency told AP. “They need meat and humans trespassing their territory are relatively easy targets.”
As the tiger attacks become more common, conservationists are hurrying to trap man-eating animals humanely, and release them away from human habitation, before terrified villagers hunt them down and kill them.
“As people encroach into tiger habitat, it's creating a crisis situation and further threatening this critically endangered subspecies,” Ian Kosasih of the conservation group WWF, said. “In light of these killings, officials have got to make public safety a top concern and put a stop to illegal clearance of forests in Sumatra.”
According to the Indonesian government, between five and ten tigers are killed on average every year, but the scale of the slaughter in 2009 is on course to be higher than ever. A male tiger was speared to death a week ago after attacking a security guard on a palm oil plantation in the Indragiri Hilir area of Jambi province, the fourth animal to be killed this year.
Three young tigers were killed in February in neighbouring Riau province, after wandering into a village in search of food. Another Sumatran tiger was successfully trapped by conservationists.
But at least six people have been mauled to death and several more attacked and injured. In the grisliest attack, a 50-year-old man named Suyud was killed in his hut, which he shared with his 21-year-old son Imam Mujianto. The young man was consumed by the creature, which ate his brain, heart and liver, according to local reports.
“The shocking news that six people have been killed in less than one month is an extremely sad illustration of how bad the situation has become in Jambi,” said Didy Wurjanto, the head of the Jambi province Nature Conservancy Agency. “It’s a signal that we need to get serious about protecting natural forest and giving tigers their space.”
The number of tigers across the world has declined by 95 per cent in the past century, and three subspecies have become extinct, including the two others native to Indonesia – the Bali tiger and the Javan tiger, which was seen in the wild as late as the 1970s.
Poachers hunt them for their skins and other body parts which are a prized ingredient in traditional Asian medicines – the bodies of the animals killed in Sumatra in the past weeks quickly disappeared, and a tiger corpse is worth $3,200 (£2,200), a small fortune for an Indonesian villager.
But there is also less and less room for tigers, who require large areas in which to prowl, hunt and mate. Road building, farming, the timber industry and, particularly in Sumatra, the clearing of jungle to create lucrative palm oil plantations, is driving tigers into smaller islands of natural forest.
Sumatra’s lowland forests are shrinking at the rate of 2,700 sq km every year, an area larger than Luxemburg.
“You can't expect tigers to become vegetarians,” Nurazman Nurdin of the Nature Conservation Agency told AP. “They need meat and humans trespassing their territory are relatively easy targets.”

( Richard Lloyd Parry, Asia Editor (TIMES online)

Note: Out of 8 species of the tiger found in the world 3(Caspian, Javan and Bali tigers) are already extinct. Apart from Sumatran tigers other tigers like Amur, South Chineses and Indo-Chinese tigers are also on the brink of extinction and their population is ranging only in hundreds. The situation of Royal Bengal Tiger is also at abysmal low and as per the recent census carried out by the Wildlife Institute of India, their number is ranging between 1400 to 1600 in the country. In the recent time the strayed tigers have drew the attention of media, politicians, people and conservationists which indicates the problem of fragmentation and resource overlapping of the protected areas. Is it really "last call of the tiger???"--Ramesh Pandey.

Back in this new year...

Hello friends,

I was almost out of touch with most of you, that too for more than six months. Many of us could not know even why?? Now I am no more physically working in Katerniaghat; one of the most wonderful areas which always fascinated me.. the typical terai mosaic of forests and grasslands.. the foggy winters..sun basking gharials in Girwa, deep throated mating growls of tigers near bandha, night patrolling and camp fire at Nishangara range campus, sitting on machan at bansatti phanta..and so many nostalgic moments..which still reminds me their very much presence...when ever I am alone, when ever I think about Tigers, Elephant, Gharials, Dolphins or Swamp patridges or when ever I want to do some thing for their protection and coservation.

Now I am in Delhi, the capital of the country...and if not mistaken the capital of illegal wildlife trade in the country far long time. I have joined Wildlife Crime Control Bureau, as Regional Head of Northern Region, which covers U.P., Uttarakhand, Delhi NCT, Chandigarh, Haryana, Punjab, Himachal, Rajasthan and Jammu & Kashmir.

This Bureau came up in the Year 2007 after the 2006 amendment in the Wildlife Protection Act-1972. This is one of the recommendation of the Tiger Task Force constituted by the Government of India after Sariska Episode. The bureau has been set up to combat the wildlife crime and illegal trade of wildlife parts and products in the country.

I take it as opportunity to work of national and international linkages related with wildlife conservation and protection with special emphasis on wildlife poaching and crime related to illegal trade of wildlife articles.

For the initial six month I was on my toes to righly begin with on the task given. During this period, It was busy to understand the work areas and how to execute the mandate in most professional manner. It did not leave any scope to think about this blog and to write some thing for my favourite subject i.e. wild and wilderness.

By this way I hope to be in touch with all my friends who sincerely think about the need of conservation in the present scenario when tigers have come out from jungles and drew the attention of all 'khas-o-aam' in the state, who wish to see the majestic animal every time when they visit Dudhwa-Katernia or any other such areas.